A second charm slid into Nie Huo's left hand. A flat hexagonal talisman strung with thin copper wire and reinforced with leftover beast bone.
Its surface bore hand-etched lines that glowed faintly with qi.
Scrap Veil Compass.
Again, one of his personal contraptions, pieced together from scraps and junk he'd picked off burnt ruins and abandoned formations. Nothing fancy.
But it had gotten him out of trouble more than once.
Nie Huo used this charm to double check his surroundings when something felt off.
He tilted it slightly, letting a thread of his spiritual sense flow through the etched runes.
The charm clicked softly, then spun in a slow half-circle, glowing a faint green.
Tick. Tick. Tick.
Seconds passed.
Its glow faded, dimming to a dull gray.
Nothing.
No disruption, no spatial twisting, no illusion tremble. The compass had done its sweep.
And found absolutely nothing.
Nie Huo frowned.
So either this place was real…
